COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The days after were dark, lonely, solemn, discomforting.

Ryan Shazier watched the game film over and over. He laid in his bed, contemplating the same two questions.

"How did this happen?"

"Why did this happen?"

The Buckeyes expected a battle with Michigan State. They didn't expect to fall short in their fight for a national championship game berth.

"I just couldn't stop thinking about it because it felt so unreal," Shazier said.

After the Spartans snapped Ohio State's 24-game winning streak, Urban Meyer opened the floor in the locker room to anyone who wanted to offer words of encouragement. Even Meyer, though, took the loss -- his first as the Buckeyes' head coach -- exceptionally hard. He answered questions during his postgame news conference with his head down, buried in the microphone, his voice quivering. For the first time in two years, he seemed vulnerable, mortal, just as his team had appeared on the field in the three or four hours before.

The players displayed a similar demeanor after the defeat. And even a week later, that temperament hasn't completely disappeared.

The Buckeyes had four days off following the Big Ten Championship Game. Coaches spent the time recruiting; players rested their fatigued bodies. They returned to practice on Thursday, when they commenced preparation for the Orange Bowl and their opponent, Clemson, who they will play at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla., on Jan. 3.

"We really don't talk about it anymore because we don't want to keep bringing up the past," Shazier said. "We lost, so we just try to move on."

Moving on has proven difficult, however, especially given the four-week layoff preceding the bowl game.

"I'm trying not to think about it anymore," said defensive end Joey Bosa. "I've pretty much gotten over it, but it was really hard. It still gets at me every once in a while, but it was really hard for a couple of days."

Tight end Jeff Heuerman said the team is still experiencing "some lingering effects."

"It's definitely a weird feeling, just because it hadn't been experienced around here in so long and it's never been experienced with Coach Meyer and his staff here," Heuerman said. "So there's still a little bit of sting, but you have to keep moving. It's part of the game of football. We have a big one coming up, so we have to keep moving forward."

Shazier, who has sought guidance from his parents during his attempt to hurdle the mental obstacle, said Meyer was noticeably distraught.

"I could tell it was tough on him because we all expected to go to the national championship and win that game," Shazier said. "It was tough on all of us. We all handled it pretty much the same. We just stayed close to each other and we hung out with the people that are most important to us."

This is uncharted territory for Meyer's Buckeyes. Can Ohio State block out its most recent football memory as it prepares for the final act of its 2013 script? Shazier contends the past is history.

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